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Cleaning Up After Powerful Tornado; Texas Fires Still Igniting; Easter Eggs & Ex-Cons; FBI Identify Man Who Planted Bomb in Colorado Mall; Passenger Attacked Flight Attendant, Wanted Flight Diverted to Tripoli; Love Triangle in Florida Leads to Shooting, Beating of Teenage Boy

Aired April 24, 2011 - 18:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Right now on CNN:

A crude reality.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, the garage, it took the whole roof off of it and lifted it up and put it on the neighbor's -- on top of their roof over there.

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LEMON: Surviving a fierce tornado. Now, the aftermath: flattened homes, decimated lives -- a trail of destruction.

And tortured to death.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The ring leader shot him and then they put him in a tub to break his knees.

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LEMON: This isn't the mob. It's teenagers accused of mob-like hit on another teen, including burning a body to get rid of the evidence. A stepfather is helping them do it. You got to see it to believe it.

Then, bullets over L.A.

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LEMON: A police helicopter shot by urban snipers. Video of the scramble to avoid a crash landing, and up close and personal with the cops hunting down the gunman.

Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon. The news starts right now.

And we begin with this -- it's just in to CNN: frightening new images of a tornado that tore through St. Louis, shot by some people in the car who got way too close for comfort.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It hit that transformer just to the right. The tornado is right in front of us.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God. Dude, another one. Dude, another one!

(EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Power lines!

(EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know if we should go any further.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm stopping, dude. (EXPLETIVE DELETED) There are power lines down.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Yes, we can't get passed. We can't get passed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you want to back up a little bit?

(EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dude, there's a (EXPLETIVE DELETED)!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Do you hear that rain there? These guys were actually chasing the tornado and they definitely found it about two miles west of Lambert Airport.

Flights are coming and going again at the airport less than 48 hours after that powerful tornado bashed into it. One of the concourses is still closed. So, it's not totally back on schedule. Still, it's a lot better than Saturday when only a handful of flights landed. The tornado had crippled the airport, blasting out windows and rocking planes.

You know, it's been a very long weekend for people who live in the tornado's paths. This is what winds of 166 miles per hour or more can do. Lots of cleanup today and in the weeks ahead in these neighbors. Seven hundred fifty homes damaged.

But despite the loss of property, there was no loss of life. There are no reports, fortunately, of deaths or serious injuries.

CNN's Dan Simon has been talking with tornado victims all day long. And for many of them, as Dan tells us, the cleanup is just beginning.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An emotional Marcy and Kevin Baker see their home for the first time since the tornado hit Friday evening. They have a 15-month-old baby who slept in what was a nursery on the second floor.

MARCY BAKER, LOST HOUSE: We are alive, our neighbors are alive, and our son is alive. And so, we are OK.

SIMON: They are OK because the Bakers were out of town in Texas. Today, they grabbed some boxes, pack up what they can, and begin to think about what it will be like starting over.

BAKER: We had a dining room table, couch, loveseat, chair, TV and stereo.

SIMON: Across the street, Laura Walter can't belief her bad luck. She shows us why, pointing to this sign in the front yard. The house was for sale and had gotten a buyer.

(on camera): When were you supposed to close?

LAURA WALTER, LOST HOUSE: Thursday, this coming Thursday.

SIMON: Has that person been informed?

WALTER: I have no idea. I haven't really had much time to do anything but clean up here.

SIMON (voice-over): This is the St. Louis suburb of Bridgeton. The tornado cutting a path down this entire street.

(on camera): Tell me about your house.

CHUCK GREEN, LOST HOUSE & BUSINESS: Gone. The roof was sitting on the vehicles or out in the street. Inside the house was, you know, open to the storm. The back portion of the house is blown out.

SIMON (voice-over): Ironically, Chuck Green lost his emergency service business, too, since he worked at home.

GREEN: Today is calm down my wife, have a good meal and regroup Monday morning and start all over.

SIMON (on camera): As if you needed more evidence on how powerful the storm was, I want to show you this. This is one of the most unusual things we've seen. This is from the frame of a house. This is a two- by-four piece of wood driven right through the radiator of this SUV.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, until you see it in person, I think it's even more devastating.

SIMON (voice-over): One person finds humor in all this misery -- a "for sale" sign in front of a destroyed vehicle.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Dan Simon joins us now live from Bridgeton, Missouri.

Dan, man, look at the devastation around, can you show us around?

SIMON: You bet, Don. If you want to se what an EF-4 tornado does to your neighborhood, here it is. This is the community of Bridgeton.

This is the Harmann Estates subdivision. Everywhere you look, down the block, home after home leveled. And it's on both sides of the street. You see it on this side of the street and look across.

And here's what's also amazing, Don. When you consider that you have all these homes destroyed right in front of us, you have this home that's basically untouched. It has a little bit of siding that came off, but the people who live here are going to go back in there tonight and sleep there. They don't have any power, but that's just really amazing when you consider that you have this home destroyed and the one right next to it seems perfectly fine -- Don.

LEMON: All right. I bet it is devastation like that all over. Dan Simon, thank you so much. We appreciate that.

Cooler temperatures have given Texas firefighters a much-needed break this weekend, but they are bracing for more flare-ups tomorrow as warm, dry weather sweeps across the state. The worst of it -- well, it's been in Palo Pinto County where flames have destroyed nearly 200 homes.

For the next two days, firefighters will rely on helicopters and military planes to douse the blaze with retardant. Meantime, hundreds of residents were forced to evacuate, return to their homes this is weekend, but officials warn they may need to evacuate again.

Some nasty storms are ripping through much of the count try right now from Arkansas to the mid-Atlantic. I want you to look at this new video. This is the scene in Kenton County, Kentucky, after powerful winds ripped the roof right off this home, hurling it and a camper into the front yard. The (INAUDIBLE) winds easily uprooted this giant tree. And there are more severe storms on the way.

So, let's turn now to meteorologist Alexandra Steele.

Alexandra, nice to meet you.

ALEXANDRA STEELE, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Nice to meet you, Don.

LEMON: I meet you on a very busy day when it comes to the weather. There are a some hot spots right now.

STEELE: Yes, a lot of hot spots. Actually, we're going to talk a little Texas because of the fires. There's also some lightning there which certainly is a problem for the PK fire. So, let's get to that. And also, again, more tornado watches.

As we look toward the bigger picture, the breadth and depth, you can see it firing off all the way from Dallas through Oklahoma City. This quadrant of concern, it's been there, continues to be there today, and will, once again, the same threat for tomorrow. That's why flooding is such a big deal.

One area I want to look at right here west of Dallas, along I-20, around Abilene. We were just talking about that. Don was showing you those fires. Well, right now, around Abilene and at the Abilene airport, three to four-inch diameter hail happening there. And also, now, a new tornado watch and gusts to 80 miles per hour. So, that's one area of concern.

Here's the area you can see tornado watches and warnings even right again along I-20. And we have had one report of a tornado near Abilene and Baird, Texas, today.

All right. Now, looking a little bit farther north and east, you can see again the same line of storms moving all the way to Washington, D.C. Earlier tonight, they were in Loudoun, Montgomery County, just northwest of Washington. Right now, crossing the Delmarva and you can see where they are.

Take a look at this cell -- 58-mile-per-hour wind gusts here. Certainly be mindful of that. And also, quarter-sized hail. So, that's the current concern.

Showing here the radar and what we got happening right now. But the problem is the setup remains the same. This April is going down in the record books with a way above average tornadoes, twice the amount. And in terms of rainfall, flooding is a huge concern, about 300 times where we normally have been in terms of rain average for this time of the year.

So, fire threat in Texas, severe storms firing of once again in Oklahoma City and continuing into tomorrow towards Washington and Baltimore once again.

All right. That's a look at the forecast. Don, back to you.

LEMON: Thank you. And again, welcome. Good to have you here. Appreciate it. We'll see you a little bit later here on CNN.

I want to tell you about some dramatic video just in to CNN of a gunman opening fire on a police helicopter in Los Angeles.

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LEMON: Again, that was opening fire, a gunman on a police helicopter in Los Angeles. It happened earlier this morning near the Van Nuys Airport. Police were responding to a call about a man with an assault rifle. As the police helicopter circled overhead, you saw suddenly, five or six shots were fired at it. The aircraft was hit, possibly in the gas tank, but landed safely at the airport. Fortunately, no one was hurt. The alleged gunman, though, was tackled by family members and then taken into custody by police.

Every year, the White House hosts its Easter egg roll. But this year, though, 6,000 eggs are serving another purpose as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It makes you feel good to know you are part of an organization that does so many good things for the community. And to be recognized by the White House is -- it doesn't get much better than that.

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LEMON: We are going to show you how a man went from ex-con to chef and what that has to do with Easter at the White House.

And let us hear from you through social media. Please. You can reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, CNN.com/Don, and on Foursquare.com as well.

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LEMON: Pope Benedict XVI celebrates Easter Sunday, what many Christians consider the most holy day of the year, the day when Jesus Christ was resurrected. Tens of thousands of pilgrims worshiped with the pope at St. Peter Square in Vatican City. The pontiff's homily asked for peace in Libya, and the Ivory Coast. Both nations are experiencing wars. The pope also prayed for Japan, which was ravaged by the tsunami and earthquake last month.

And here in the U.S., President Barack Obama was among the millions recognizing today's Christians' holy day today. He and the first lady and daughters Malia and Sasha attended services at Shiloh Baptist Church in Washington, a founded by freed slaves. Congregants gave a stand ovation when the first family arrived and the reverend gave them a welcome message.

Last year, the Obama celebrated Easter at a Methodist Church.

It's a curious combination, Easter eggs and ex-cons. You probably don't know it, but they are all a part of Monday's presidential springtime tradition, the White House Easter egg roll.

CNN's Sandra Endo explains.

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SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Chefs at D.C. Central Kitchen preparing what may be the most important order of the year: 6,000 hard-boiled eggs going to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, colorfully served up for the annual White House Easter festivities.

JEFF RAGSDALE, CHEF: This is all the stuff that was made earlier today and yesterday. It will be going out tomorrow.

ENDO: Chief Jeff Ragsdale explains how his life and the lives of many of his co-workers have broken pasts.

(on camera): What were you doing that made you hit rock bottom?

RAGSDALE: Drugs, alcohol, illegal activity.

ENDO (voice-over): For years, Ragsdale was in and out of jail, at one point homeless, with nowhere to turn.

(on camera): What was it like for you?

RAGSDALE: Desperate. Figuring out how I'm going to survive day to day, escaping death, one bad situation after another. But things aren't like that anymore.

ENDO (voice-over): He applied to D.C. Central Kitchen's culinary job- training program which gives formally incarcerated and homeless people a chance to learn new skills.

RAGSDALE: I have been working with the kitchen for almost a year now. But --

ENDO: Ragsdale worked his way up to a shift supervisor for the program, working with volunteers.

RAGSDALE: It makes you feel good to know you are part of an organization that does so many good things for the community and to be recognized by the White House is -- it doesn't get much better than that.

ENDO (on camera): Jeff is one of hundreds who have come through this program and is now thriving. There are so many different stories to be told here, and a lot of workers say this is the one place where they feel understood.

BRIAN MACNAIR, D.C. CENTRAL KITCHEN: There's a lot of people who would like some training, but we really look at ex-offenders, men and women in substance abuse recovery. And we found the ones that we come and screen and get to in the beginning stage of the program are really ready to change their lives. This is a life-changing program. It's not just a culinary job training program.

RAGSDALE: I know what's like to go through struggles and know that you can only keep what you have by giving that away.

ENDO (voice-over): Giving away some Easter spirit is just a little example of their rebirth.

Sandra Endo, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Today is also a holy time for Jews. It is the fifth day of Passover. The religious observance involves Jews cleaning house and getting rid of specific leaven items. It marks the time when God freed Jews from slavery in Egypt more than a thousand years before Christ was born. Passover began last Tuesday and will end this Tuesday at sunset.

Gas prices -- some people wince when they hear the two words. Prices are up and the national average is inching closer to the $4 mark. But the high prices are putting the spotlight back on fuel-efficient cars. Next, we'll take you to the New York Auto Show.

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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The attorney general is putting together a team whose job it is to root out any cases of fraud or manipulation in the oil markets that might affect gas prices. And that includes the roll of traders and speculators. We're going to make sure that nobody is taking advantage of American consumers.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That's the president there. If you live in Tucson or Denver, you are lucky. Gasoline is cheaper for you than anywhere else in the country: $3.54 a gallon -- $3.54 is cheap now, all right?

Look at this map. Prices all over the country according to the Lundberg Survey. Drivers in Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles pay the highest prices, well over $4. Nationally, the average today is $3.88 for a gallon of unleaded.

You know, filling up a tank -- filling up the tank can take a big chunk out of a household budget, a big chunk out of your wallet. That's why many people are thinking seriously about dumping the gas hog for a hybrid or electric vehicle.

CNN's Susan Candiotti has some standouts for us at this year's New York auto show.

Susan, I'm jealous, I wish I was there to see all the great new cars. Are people showing much interest in these new cars, though?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A lot. In fact, fuel- efficient cars and zero-gas cars are generating a lot of interest at this year's show.

Now, we are also going to show you right now a car that you never have to visit a gas station again. This is a 100 percent electric car. It is the Nissan Leaf and won the world car award. This is something voted on by reporters that only cover the automotive industry.

This thing gets 100 miles on a seven-hour charge. Now, it, again, eliminates any trips to the gas station. It costs $32,000. That includes a federal tax credit.

Now, admittedly, this is not for everyone. It's a commuter car.

And there are some cars shown here, for example, the Chevy Volt, that has won awards as well, that is a combination of electric as well as gasoline. So, if you run out of juice, you don't run out of power. You can -- the car kicks over to the gasoline-powered engine as well. And on that, you got a good amount of mileage, too. Nine gallons, you can up to 344 miles on that.

But it is not the only kind of car that is generating a lot of buzz. Take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: For those of you who remember the 1960s and the VW bus, this is the new version of it. It's called the Bulli. Now, this one is 100 percent electric. And it has all kinds of pluses.

It goes 186 miles on a single six-hour charge. It goes up to speeds of 86 miles per hour. And look at the inside, seats four people, by the way.

It comes with an iPad. And this will be fully integrated to all car systems. It can tell you speeds, navigation, where your charging stations are, that kind of thing.

But I will tell you this -- it's not available yet. It's still a concept car. So, we can't even tell you the price yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: But this Nissan car is not a concept car. About 20,000 of these are on the road right now. You can plug this in and charge it up at home with a three-prong outlet, but there are also charging stations.

Right now, they are located in a few places around the country, the Pacific Northwest, California, some places in the Southeast. But, for example, they are going to be available in a few months or so. You can get on a waiting list and will be able to purchase some that will be made in the United States next year.

Now, you wonder, well, how much of a bite does it cost to charge the cars at home? They say for some, it costs $2.64 to charge up the car, and as little as a buck and a half. So, talk about saving money, this may very --

LEMON: How much will it set you back, Susan?

CANDIOTTI: -- well be the way of the future.

LEMON: How much will it set you back?

CANDIOTTI: What is that again?

LEMON: How much will it set you back? What does it cost?

CANDIOTTI: Yes. This one costs, let's see, $41,000 or so as the base price. But you get a $7,500 federal tax credit, which brings it down to $32,000. The Chevy Volt, I think, is $25,000.

How, this one, sorry -- I stand corrected, what was that again? This one is $25,000, sorry about that.

LEMON: OK.

CANDIOTTI: Very similar. Look, they are very affordable, quite clearly.

LEMON: Yes, Susan Candiotti at the New York Auto Show -- thank you, Susan. Appreciate it.

Let's move on now and talk about Major League Baseball. It takes control of the L.A. Dodgers, a team's owner is strapped for cash battling as he battles through a very public divorce.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This outcome of the decision that is out of our hands, players' hands, you know? It's a thing where -- you know, we are just going out there and playing and hopefully representing the city and this organization as best we can. And still gives us -- you know, just -- you know, our fans still have something to cheer about and be happy and proud about.

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LEMON: Coming up, a look at what this means for the team and fans. Plus, the latest on the Miami Dolphins' star receiver whose wife was arrested for stabbing him.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: Any response at all to all the reports, all the allegations?

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LEMON: Silence from the wife of Miami Dolphins' star receiver Brandon Marshall. That's Michi Nogami-Marshall leaving jail on Saturday after being charged with stabbing her husband in the stomach. Brandon Marshall is already out of the hospital but the saga is far from over. That's where we'll start right now with Pablo Torre of "Sports Illustrated."

Hi, Pablo. At first, Brandon said it was an accident, his own fault. Now, a sort of saga of domestic violence appears to be unfolding here. What's going on?

PABLO TORRE, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: Yes. Brandon Marshall's wife admitted to Broward County sheriffs that she was, in fact, who stabbed her husband and she did it out of, quote-unquote, "self-defense."

And what that adds up to really is just the latest chapter in a unfortunate history of domestic abuse allegations for Brandon Marshall, a tremendously, tremendously talented wide receiver and a star wide receiver, but also one who is likely to lead your team in domestic run-ins and police run-ins. And allegations like this, as he has touch downs or receptions. And that's really just the latest in the string of incidents throughout his career.

LEMON: Yes. I'm glad you mentioned that because, first, we want to show you. We have some photos that appeared in "Essence" magazine after the couple got married. The magazine described a big, lavish wedding that they had. And as we look at these, Pablo, we have to point out again that this is the couple's first time in this position, is it?

TORRE: Yes. Yes, it is. They had an incident in March 2009. It was a misdemeanor battery charge in Atlanta. But other than that, in Miami, Brandon Marshall has been on pretty good behavior.

And, in fact, in Denver, it was, you know, a story that wouldn't end. I mean, that was part of the reason he was shipped out of there a year ago this month. And it was thought he was on best behavior back in Miami. But, unfortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case thus far.

LEMON: OK. So, what, if anything, does this mean for him professionally or personally?

TORRE: Well, professionally, it seems like right now, the Dolphins are standing by their guy. Official contact isn't allowed between the teams and players because of the current NFL lockout. But what we do know is that the team doesn't have any drastic plans. That's the news coming out of Miami right now.

And, you know, for better and for worse, he's such a talented athlete, such a talented player that, you know, he's avoided a lot of the major scrapes that you'd expect of a guy with such a history.

And so, really, nothing too major right now, but we'll have to see when the cards are on the table in terms of the legal charges and what ends up happening to him.

LEMON: OK. So, Pablo, if on the field is where it really matters. The draft is this week. The new "Sports Illustrated," as you see it there, the cover features the top quarterbacks in the draft. There's Cam Newton on that cover right there. Can we take it right there? He is front and center.

Football fans better enjoy this because labor talks are going nowhere. What do you know?

TORRE: Yes. What we have is a bunch of hearings coming up. And I hope NFL fans have their newly-minted schedules and their copy of "Black's Law Dictionary" because it's going to be a while. And what we have on May 16th is a resumption of mediation hearings that just ended this week between the NFL and the players union. Four days before that, on May 12th, we have a hearing about the TV rights fees and other case that's crucial took deciding leverage between the league and the players.

And then this week, hopefully, we have a ruling on the players filing, an injunction to hopefully end the lockout. But even if that's granted some point early this week, it's only going to trigger another repeal and, thus, more litigation, more hearings. So, really, fans have to be patient right now.

LEMON: So, you are saying the chances are it's going to drag on. So, what happens if this lockout drags into the season?

TORRE: Well, it's a funny thing. The newly-released NFL schedule, which fans will currently be seen praying over in the coming months, is actually constructed to allow for a little bit of leeway. They can miss the first three regular season games as currently scheduled and still make them up at later points in the season. The NFL has curiously and very smartly, actually, accommodated that. The teams that appear in week three, for example, all play each other and share- by (ph) weeks later in the season. Meaning they can miss three and then make it up later in the season. They can then take away the extra second week between the conference championships and the Super Bowl and they can push the Super Bowl a week back just to get all 16 all-important regular season games in. But, again, three weeks is realistic, I think, it may go for longer than that, three weeks.

LEMON: OK, thank you very much. Pablo Torre, we appreciate it, from "Sports Illustrated."

The FBI has identified the man they believe planted a bomb in a Colorado mall. Someone found the bomb at a Littleton mall on the 12th anniversary of the Columbine shooting. We have new photos of the man investigators are looking for.

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LEMON: Time now for "Top Stories" on CNN.

Heavy shelling in Mesrata today just hours after Moammar Gadhafi claimed his forces were retreating from the city. One of the attacks was caught on amateur video. Look.

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(SHOUTING)

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LEMON: You can hear the bomb explode and see the plume of smoke just a few hundred yards away.

Meantime, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham today calling on coalition forces to up the ante in Libya, suggesting they bomb Gadhafi's inner circle.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SHOUTING)

(GUNFIRE)

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LEMON: That is Syria right there. Security forces opened fire on pro-democracy demonstrators today, killing at least two. Witnesses tell CNN secret police surrounded a mosque being used as a makeshift hospital. Snipers fired from rooftops without warning. This weekend's violence comes on the heels of this weekend's crackdown killing at least 75 people.

Flights are coming and going again at Lambert Airport in St. Louis two days after a powerful tornado tore through the city. The cleanup has just begun for people living in the pathway. About 750 homes were damaged. Some of them totally blown apart, as you can see right there. Despite all the destruction, there are no reports of any deaths.

Do you recognize this man? He is 65-year-old Earl Albert Moore, and the FBI wants the public's help to locate him. Look at him again. Moore has been named as a suspect in last week's fatal bomb attempt at a mall in Littleton, Colorado. He has an extensive criminal record. The bomb was planted near a food court on the anniversary of the Columbine school massacre. The FBI says they don't know if the two events are linked. And investigators say Moore had just released from prison 11 days ago.

In Tulsa, Oklahoma, how would you like seeing this large cat prowling around your backyard? That thing is huge! Animal control officers finally nailed the cougar with a tranquilizer dart. They aren't sure where it came from, whether it wandered from the wild or was someone's pet that got loose. Either way, local residents wanted nothing to do with the 70-pound predator.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They tried to shoot it with the tranquilizer, and she missed and it growled real big in the tree and it just jumped out. And I don't know. I just took off running.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. We should tell you, it is OK. The big cat is now settling in at the local zoo, where it should be.

Speaking of animals, wildlife enthusiasts want you to help save the frogs. This week, the nation's capital will host the annual Save the Frogs day. Didn't know there was such a thing. Straight ahead, we'll tell you what that's about here on CNN.

But first, summer travel season is almost here, and CNN's Rob Marciano reports in this edition of "On the Go." A little planning can save you big bucks.

(ON THE GO)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Now to the big stories for the week ahead. From the capitol to Tinseltown, our correspondents tell you what you need to know. We begin at the nation's capital.

KATE BALDWIN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Kate Baldwin at the White House. The president and first lady start off their week with the annual Easter egg roll. And Tuesday, the president will host the crown prince of the United Arab Emirates here at the White House. Wednesday, the president and first lady fly to Chicago for a taping with Oprah Winfrey before the president flies to New York for two fundraising events there. The following day, the president will host the president of Panama back here at the White House. Finally, on Friday, the first family travels to Cape Canaveral, Florida, to watch the launch of the space shuttle "Endeavour." The husband of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is the commander of the shuttle.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: I'm Barbara Starr at the Pentagon. Figuring out what to do in Libya remains a top priority. NATO is still in the lead, prosecuting the air war over Moammar Gadhafi's Libya. But bad weather, difficulty in finding targets, all of that making it very tough for NATO to prosecute the air war and for the U.S. predator drones, armed with missiles, now flying over Libya, but hampered by the bad weather. So expect the debate about the word "stalemate" to go on for some days to come.

POPPY HARLOW, HOST, CNN MONEY: I'm Poppy Harlow in New York. Coming up this week, Wall Street will be watching Main Street as we get key housing reports on both sales volume and home prices across major U.S. cities. And central bankers gather Tuesday for their two-day policy meeting in Washington. We'll get their announcement on interest rates Wednesday. And Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke will give his first-ever news conference following the announcement. Finally, we'll get the first look at just how much the U.S. economy grew in the first three months of this year with the first-quarter GDP report. And that is coming out on Thursday. We'll track it all for you, of course, on "CNN Money." A.J. HAMMER, HOST, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT: I'm "Showbiz Tonight's" A.J. Hammer. Here's what we are watching this week, the royal wedding, of course. We are just days away now to the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. "Showbiz Tonight's" Brooke Anderson is live from London starting on Monday with all the big breaking wedding news. "Showbiz Tonight," live at 5:00 p.m. eastern on HLN. We are still TV's most provocative entertainment news show at 11:00 p.m. eastern and pacific.

LEMON: I like that, "big breaking wedding news, big breaking wedding news."

(LAUGHTER)

For our international news, which includes the marriage of Britain's Prince William to his college girlfriend. That's going to dominate this week, but it is not just about -- in the headlines. Frogs will be a focus today, too.

Azadeh Ansari, with our international desk is here, producer.

So, Azadeh, International Frog Day? What is that?

AZADEH ANSARI, CNN INTERNATIONAL NEWS DESK EDITOR: They are going to have to share the day with the royal wedding.

(LAUGHTER)

So the kermits of the world are asking for attention, Don.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: A frog and a prince. All right.

ANSARI: That's right. What we are talking here is the largest awareness of amphibians. It is a day that's celebrating them. It's an awareness day. And it is also targeted towards conservation of frogs and other amphibians, not to mention the fact that, like, a third of the world, it's about 6,810 amphibians are on the very of being extinct and are endangered.

LEMON: What's the threat and why are the frogs disappearing?

ANSARI: There's a lot of different reasons, but one is their habitats are disappearing. Not to mention, they are being taken out of the wild for uses such as consumption. The frog legs industry is a big industry, as we know of. And in Indonesia, for example, they are the largest exporters of frog legs across the world. The largest importers happen to be France, Belgium and the U.S. So that's one thing. Not to mention, the invasive species that they have or the illnesses they carry, and can affect other frogs in their new environments. And they are transported for lab purposes. And by being transported, they also carry with them certain diseases that then, in turn, affect the population.

LEMON: And every time something like that happens, when they are on the verge of becoming extinct or become extinct, it messes with the ecology of the earth.

ANSARI: Absolutely.

LEMON: And it changes the ecology.

ANSARI: You bring up a great point. It is not just -- people are like, oh, who cares about frogs. The point is that there is bio- indicators, so if something is going on with them, there's probably something else going on in the environment that we should be concerned about, too.

LEMON: Well, we care about frogs, because they are really cute as well. That's the least of the reasons we care about them.

ANSARI: Maybe Kate can kiss one --

LEMON: Maybe --

(LAUGHTER)

ANSARI: And turn them into princes. Who knows?

LEMON: Maybe she did.

(LAUGHTER)

All right, thank you, Azadeh. Appreciate it.

ANSARI: Thanks, Don. LEMON: We were talking about Kate. We were talking about -- what's his name -- William. I always forget it is William. What's the other one? Harry? William?

It's being called the wedding of the century and it's just five days away. It is crunch time for all the last-minute details. Coming up, we take you to Westminster Abbey in London, where Kate Middleton and Prince William will be exchanging vows.

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LEMON: All right, some breaking news here on CNN. It involves the possibility of a hijacking here. Alitalia confirms in a statement to CNN that apparently an agitated passenger attacked a flight attendant on Alitalia's flight 329 from Paris to Rome -- that was late Sunday night -- and asked that the flight be diverted to Tripoli, Libya. Other flight attendants immobilized the attacker on the plane, and its 131 passengers landed safely at Rome's airport where the attacker was taken into custody. Again, a possible hijacking. There are some things to work out here. Averted, averted in the skies. Again, this passenger asked to be taken to Tripoli, Libya, an agitated passenger. The flight attendant was taken to the airport and to the emergency room for a checkup. Again, I just want to reiterate. Again, this is just coming into CNN. Alitalia confirms in a statement to CNN that apparently an agitated passenger attacked a flight attendant on flight 329 from Paris to Oklahoma on Sunday and then demanded that the flight be diverted to Tripoli. Other flight attendants immobilized the attacker and the plane and its 131 passenger landed safety at the Rome airport where the attacker was taken into custody. As soon as we get more information on this breaking story, if it warrants, we'll bring it to you here on CNN.

A shocking story out of Florida. Six people are behind bars, accused of murdering a 15-year-old boy. Police say they beat, shot and burned the teen's body. Straight ahead, our Jane Velez-Mitchell weighs in on this tragedy.

But first, making a safe bet in Las Vegas. That's exactly what one company says they are doing by investing time and money into a secret process to raise locally-grown shrimp. It is the latest report in our "Building Up America" series. And here's CNN's Tom Foreman.

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LEMON: A very sad birthday for a 16-year-old Florida girl who heard from -- right there -- you didn't hear it from her. But, again, we want to tell you, instead of celebrating, she is mourning her friend, 15-year-old Seth Jackson. On Saturday, Jackson was laid to rest less than a week after police say he fell victim to an unspeakable crime.

I talked about that and the tragic turn in the case of another teen with the host of "Issues" on HLN, Jane Velez-Mitchell. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: So, Jane, this is one of the most disturbing stories of the week, if not in a while that I've heard of. Five people, most of them teenagers, in Florida, accused of shooting and beating a 15-year-old boy, and then putting his body in a fire pit, trying to dispose of it. It started as a love triangle?

JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, HOST, ISSUES: Yes. This is beyond comprehension that a teenage girl allegedly lures her ex-boyfriend to her house saying, I want to reconcile with you, when, in fact, her current boyfriend alleged had a plot which he concocted with these other teens to kill this kid. That's exactly what cops say they proceed to do. Once they got him into the house, they allegedly hit him over the head with wooden objects. And then the ring leader shot him. And then they put him in a tub to break his knees.

LEMON: Oh!

VELEZ-MITCHELL: They realize he's still alive, and the alleged ring leader shoots him again. It really is a very scary commentary on kids today and what they are capable of.

LEMON: As if this could get any worse, it does. A 37-year-old, who has some ties to the teenagers, accused of being an assessory here, an accomplice, helping dispose of the body, drove one of the suspects out of town.

And one of our affiliates caught up with him. Let's listen to him right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES HAVENS, ACCUSED OF BEING MURDER ACCOMLICE: I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. And I was in the wrong place with all these kids. And I let them do something they shouldn't have did (ph). I left that night. I didn't think nothing (ph) of it.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: You didn't think they were being serious?

HAVENS: No, I didn't think it was serious. I went away. I left -- I left. I thought it was a joke because, you know, I mean -- I don't know what to say because I'm looking at a lot of years right now. I'm scared.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Huh?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: Cops say that's not exactly what happened. That he didn't think it was a joke, that he knew about this plot and did nothing and let it unfold. And police say he then proceeded to help the group of teenagers cover up the crime and dispose of the evidence. So this is a complete and abject failure of the parental unit. He was a stepfather of two of the kids charged. It just boggles my mind. Parents and stepparents are supposed to intervene and stop violence, not help cover it up.

LEMON: And when you are in your 30s, you should know better. And you hear teenagers talking about something like this, the least you can do is say, "You guys are crazy. Don't do this. I'm going to bust you up. You go home. You go home." Seems like something should have been done.

Can we talk about another teenager here? And this one is a really sad story as well. You and I covered this story. I'm talking Phylicia Barnes, the honor student, lived here in Maryland. Went to visit a family member in Baltimore. On December 28th, her body -- on Thursday, they found it in the Susquehanna River here. What do you expect to find? No cause of death, but what are you thinking? Do you have any idea what might have happened?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: This is another horrifying case. Apparently, authorities have 25 persons of interest they are looking at. It's a mind boggling figure. I have never heard of that before. But the mother of this poor child, who, again, was an honor student, who was going to skip a grade. She was a clean-cut, innocent that apparently goes into a bed of iniquity, so to speak. The mother of this victim says that she is outraged that her daughter went to hang out with her half sister, who is older and who apparently allegedly created an environment where there was alcohol, there was pot, there were men coming and going. So she was in a danger zone the second she stepped into that relative's apartment and the worst happened.

LEMON: Let's hope they find out who is responsible for this.

Jane, what do you have coming up? What are you going to be covering?

VELEZ-MITCHELL: We have, on a lighter note, obviously, the wedding of the century, as they are calling it over across the pond. We are deep into that. We do have to cover things on the lighter side. And, of course, the Casey Anthony case. And there are many, many breaking stories that we are going to cover on "Issues" next week. I guess you're just going to have to watch.

LEMON: Yes. You mean there's a wedding going on somewhere? Hmm.

(LAUGHTER)

A big royal wedding or something like that.

Jane Velez-Mitchell, you are wonderful.

"Issues" airs every night, 7:00 p.m. on HLN.

Thanks, Jane.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Breaking news to tell you about. CNN has confirmed an apparently agitated passenger attacked a flight attendant on Alitalia's flight 329 from Paris to Rome. It was late Sunday night and asked that the flight be diverted to Tripoli, Libya. Other flight attendants immobilized the attacker, and the plane and its 131 passengers landed safely at the airport in Rome where the attacker was taken into custody. The flight attendant was taken to the airport emergency room for a check up. Details on that as we get them.

In the meantime, I'm Don Lemon at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.